How lucky I am to have had someone who makes saying goodbye so hard.
My heart may be shattered (again), but the pain is worth it. She was worth it.
I had 3 years with such a remarkable cat, and no amount of pain now can ever take that away.
When Verde first came to Tabby’s Place, it was obvious she wasn’t going to fit in well. She didn’t like other cats, and, to be honest, she didn’t like that many humans either.
Verde had asthma that required medication, but trying to catch her to give her this medication was a battle that will go down in history as one of the biggest battles our nation has ever known (The famous Battle of Verde). Verde won every single time, and she left the staff wounded on the battlefield.
Regardless of the casualties of war, we needed to get this medication into her. However, this just stressed Verde more, and made her breathing even worse. She ended up being rushed to the emergency hospital twice because her asthma was so bad, which stressed her even more.
We nearly lost her during the last visit to the emergency room, so as a last Hail Mary, I took her home as a forever foster. I didn’t know if this would help, but we were getting desperate.
During the first few weeks, I spent many hours trying to work out how to get the medication into Verde with the least amount of stress possible. I somehow stumbled on a way that Verde could live with.
If she was sitting on the second level of a certain cat tree (no other cat tree, just this certain one; no other level of this cat tree, just the second one), she would let me do her medication with no issues.
This worked for the following three years, EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.
Verde never had problems with her asthma again. I would show her the medications and say “Verde, up,” and she would jump onto the cat tree and take her meds. I know it’s strange, but it worked. If she was in a different cat tree, she would not tolerate it; it had to be the correct cat tree.
When I had to replace this cat tree, because it had gotten old and shabby, I searched for weeks to get the exact same one: the same height and even the same color. I was still concerned she wouldn’t like it, but she accepted the new tree with no issues.
For the first few months in my home, Verde was a challenge. She didn’t really like the other cats and would get angry if they came close to her. She also had a temper, and would hit us so hard and so fast, you didn’t even see it coming.
As time went by, and Verde felt more comfortable, she became a different cat. She accepted the other cats and even became friends with some of them, and she became sweet and loving to humans. She would still give me a smack on occasion, just to let me know she was still “Verde.” But, all of her anger was gone. She was home, and she was content and happy.
About a month ago Verde dropped some weight, so she came to Tabby’s Place to see the vet team. We found she had multiple cancerous masses, and it had spread to several areas. All we could do was keep her comfortable for as long as possible.
Verde became very affectionate in her last couple of weeks, almost like she was saying thank you, and goodbye.
About a month after her diagnosis, Verde’s abdomen started to fill with fluid, and she stopped eating. She was tired, and I knew it was time to say goodbye to my friend. She left this world surrounded by love, with so many hugs, kisses and “I love you’s” whispered in her ear.
Even though it hurts to be without Verde, I have no regrets, ever. I wouldn’t trade my time with her for anything. Every time I look at her cat tree, I will smile, and shed a tear, for an opinionated, stubborn, wonderful cat who shared her life with me.
How lucky I am to have had someone who makes saying goodbye so hard.